Grandma Duck

Grandma Duck

Background

Grandma isGrandpa Duck's wife and the mother ofQuackmore Duck (Donald Duck's father),Daphne Duck (Gladstone Gander's mother), andEider Duck (Fethry Duck's father). According toThe Invader of Fort Duckburg, Grandma and her husband used to be nicknamed "Ma and Pa Duck".Walt Disney confirmed thatLudwig Von Drake was the brother of Donald's father, which would make him Grandma Duck's son, as well.^[7] However, theDisneyland episode "The Donald Duck Story" specified that the Drakes were the paternal side of Donald's family and the Ducks were the maternal side (with Donald taking his mother's name), and therefore confirmed that Grandma and Ludwig are unrelated to each other, and would make Grandma Donald's maternal grandmother. According toMickey Mouse Works andHouse of Mouse, Ludwig's mother is an off-screen Austrian lady, voiced byApril Winchell.

According to her debut appearances in Bob Karp andAl Taliaferro's Donald Duck newspaper comic strips, Grandma was an American pioneer and came west in a covered wagon.^[8][9] The strips also portrayed her as having lived through the American Civil War, when some of the money she has been "saving for a rainy day for quite a spell" turns out to be confederate money.^[10] A later strip also shows that her husband, Grandpa Duck, was a soldier who fought in the Civil War.^[11]

Grandma runs theDuck Family Farm, which is the center of the family's annual holiday gatherings, with said gatherings usually arranged by her. These are always merry, warm, and interesting occasions. Grandma Duck is a great cook and is often praised for her sublime cooking skills.

She is depicted as driving a Detroit Electric automobile. She is extremely old-fashioned, being against many current trends. However, she did persuade herself to buy a television set after seeing other farmers use it. So far, however, she has only been shown watching farm reports, news, and weather updates. Another example of her old-fashioned ways was when she tried to usher out a vacuum cleaner salesman by saying she has done just fine cleaning with her broom. In this case, the salesman was actually a gunman who then holds Grandma hostage as well as Daisy Duck (who was visiting), and demands their purses and other possessions.

Grandma's first name "Elviry" (a rural pronunciation of "Elvira") was mentioned in an untitled1950 comic (Walt Disney's Comics and Stories #121) and later used by Don Rosa in hisDuck Family Tree andThe Invader of Fort Duckburg. However, in an untitled1953 comic by Frank McSavage and Carl Fallberg (published inWalt Disney's Christmas Parade (Dell) #5), as well as the1955 comic storyRidin' the Rails (Walt Disney's Comics and Stories #173-175) Grandma's first name was said to be "Abigail".

According to numerous European stories (includingMarco Rota'sFrom Egg to Duck, created in honor of Donald's 50th anniversary in 1984), Grandma isScrooge McDuck's older sister. Occasionally they have also been portrayed as being cousins, a now rarely enforced tradition. According to the Donald Duck family treeCarl Barks sketched out for personal use in the 1950s, Scrooge is the brother of Elvira's daughter-in-law^[12]. For this relationship, there is no word in the English language.

Grandma Duck's parents made a brief appearance in Grandma's flashback inWalt Disney's Comics and Stories #161 (1954). In Don Rosa's1993Duck Family Tree, her parents' names are given as Clinton Coot and Gertrude Gadwall, while her grandfather was said to beCornelius Coot, the founder ofDuckburg (introduced by Carl Barks inStatuesque Spendthrifts, first published in1952'sWalt Disney's comics and Stories #138). She was also given a brother called Casey Coot on this tree.

History

Grandma Duck was introduced to the Disney comics byAl Taliaferro in the Donald Duck newspaper comic strips. She made her very first appearance in1940, on a portrait inDonald's house, behind which Donald tries to hide his money from burglars.

In1943, Grandma Duck visits Donald and the nephews in person in a series of newspaper strips, and from then on became an occasionally recurring character in the strips. Taliaferro found inspiration for her in his own mother-in-law, Donnie M. Wheaton. Aside from newspaper gags, Grandma also got an increasingly more prominent role in other Donald Duck comics, where she could be seen living on her farm with Donald's country cousinGus Goose as her farmhand. However, Gus is very lazy and does not work much. In some stories, especially older ones,Jaq and Gus, the two mice fromCinderella, live at Grandma Duck's farm.

Appearances

Walt Disney anthology series

Grandma made her animated debut in the1960Wonderful World of Color episode "This is Your Life, Donald Duck", where she was voiced byJune Foray. The episode depicted her great difficulty in raising Donald, a strong-willed and ill-tempered duckling from the moment he was hatched.

Cameos

Grandma also made a non-speaking cameo as a guest at Fezziwig's party inMickey's Christmas Carol (1983), and a speaking cameo (voiced byRussi Taylor) inSport Goofy in Soccermania (1987), reading the newspaper in her rocking chair, and looks notably more aged than her comic self. She has one line, praising Scrooge McDuck for donating an expensive trophy to a forthcoming soccer tournament. In theDuckTales episode "Horse Scents", Grandma can be seen very briefly among the spectators of the horse race, leaning on a cane.

Video games

Grandma Duck had a minor appearance inDonald Duck no Mahō no Bōshi, in which her pet bird, Pippi, has escaped and was consequently captured byPete. She offers to pay Donald to sneak into Pete's house to retrieve the bird, as one of the optional jobs Donald may take during the first portion of the game, and explains the controls for deactivating noisy objects so that Donald does not attract the attention of Pete's watchdog,Butch. She also shows up atSplash Mountain inMickey's Great Adventure in Tokyo Disneyland.

Disney Parks

Grandma Duck's farm was the inspiration for a children's petting farm as part of Mickey's Starland at theMagic Kingdom in Walt Disney World, where Minnie Moo, a cow with a Mickey Mouse-shaped marking, was featured. Grandma also joined Donald atDonald's 50th Birthday Parade in1984, one of Grandma's rare Disney Park appearances.Tokyo Disneyland'sToontown has a baby care center themed as a daycare operated by Grandma.

Trivia

• In most comics, mainly the Italian, Grandma was said to be Scrooge’s older sister (which would make him Donald’s granduncle) as they seemed closer and have connection with each other. They also raised Donald together while he was an infant when he was orphaned, unaware they’re biologically related. In the1987 Disney version of the board gameTrivial Pursuit however, she was featured in the question: "IsScrooge McDuck the son of Grandma Duck?" (the correct answer being no).

Gallery

References

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Media Short Films: • • • • • Feature Length Films: • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • Television: • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • Disney Parks Mickey's Toontown •Mickey and Minnie's Runaway Railway •PLAY! Entertainment:Disney Adventure Friends Cavalcade •Stitch's Interplanetary Beach Party Blast •It’s Very Minnie! •Minnie's Musical Moment •Minnie's Tiara of Dreams •Minnie, We Love You! •Club Mouse Beat •Mickey and Friends: An Extra Big Adventure •Minnie @ Funderland •Quacky Celebration ★ Donald the Legend! Spring:Disney's Easter Wonderland •Hippity Hoppity Springtime •Usatama on the Run! Summer:Summer Blast •Disney's Summer Oasis Splash •Mickey's WaterWorks Halloween:Re-Villains! Halloween Parade •Mickey's Boo-to-You Halloween Parade •Frightfully Fun Parade *The Villains' Halloween "Into the Frenzy" ChristmasA Christmas Fantasy Parade •Mickey's Once Upon a Christmastime Parade •Disney's Santa Village Parade Parades:Main Street Electrical Parade •Donald Duck's 50th Birthday Parade •SpectroMagic •Mickey Mania Parade •Jubilation! •Nightfall Glow •Paint the Night •Happiness is Here Parade •Dreaming Up! •Mickey's Storybook Express •Disney Harmony in Color! Parade •Disney Starlight Fireworks:Celebrate! Tokyo Disneyland •Disney Enchantment •Ignite the Dream: A Nighttime Spectacular of Magic and Light •World of Color: Celebrate •We Love Mickey! •Wondrous Journeys Characters : • • • • • Secondary characters:Chip and Dale •Pete •Clarabelle Cow •Horace Horsecollar •Huey, Dewey, and Louie •Scrooge McDuck •Ludwig Von Drake Characters from Walt Disney Animation Studios:Julius the Cat •Oswald the Lucky Rabbit •Ortensia •J. P. Whiskers •Homer the Cat •Fanny Cottontail •Bunny Children •Parrot •Clara Cluck •The Mad Doctor •Mortimer Mouse •The Three Little Pigs •Big Bad Wolf •Little Red Riding Hood •Yen Sid •Magic Brooms •José Carioca •Panchito Pistoles •Humphrey the Bear •Max Goof •J. Audubon Woodlore •Figaro •Bootle Beetle •Butch the Bulldog •Fifi the Peke •Dinah the Dachshund •Aracuan Bird •Salty the Seal •Louie the Mountain Lion •Raja •Bear •Spike the Bee •Lonesome Ghosts •Willie the Giant •Weasels •Peter Pig •Mammy Two Shoes •Witch Hazel •Donna Duck •P.J. •Pluto's Kid Brother •Pluto's Quin-puplets •Pluto Junior •Clarice •Kat Nipp •Dolores the Elephant •Bobo the Elephant •Gopher •Bent-Tail the Coyote •Bent-Tail Junior •Milton the Cat •Pluto's Angel •Pluto's Devil Characters from comic stories:Phantom Blot •Morty and Ferdie Fieldmouse •Chief O'Hara •Millie and Melody Mouse •Gyro Gearloose •Gus Goose •Beagle Boys •Daisy's parents •Grandma Duck •Gladstone Gander •Magica De Spell •Flintheart Glomgold •Gilbert Goof •John D. Rockerduck •Hortense McDuck •Quackmore Duck •Sylvester Shyster •Trudy Van Tubb •Felicity Fieldmouse •April, May, and June •Della Duck •Moby Duck •Hortense Characters from Disney Television Animation:Launchpad McQuack •Webby Vanderquack •Ma Beagle •Bentina Beakley •Duckworth •GizmoDuck •Bubba the Cave Duck •Gadget Hackwrench •Monterey Jack •Zipper •Fat Cat •Darkwing Duck •Gosalyn Mallard •Peg Pete •Pistol Pete •Roxanne •Bobby Zimmeruski •Sylvia Marpole •Bradley Uppercrust III •Tank •Baby Shelby •The Troubadour •Toodles •Cuckoo-Loca •Martian Mickey •Pluto from Pluto •Martian Minnie •Billy Beagle •Xandra •Baron Von Sheldgoose Characters from Disney Experiences:Duffy the Disney Bear •ShellieMay the Disney Bear •Gelatoni •StellaLou •CookieAnn •'Olu Mel •TippyBlue •LinaBell •Mr. Easter Bunny •Mrs. Easter Bunny •Chuuby Key artists Producers and directors:Walt Disney •Burt Gillett •Wilfred Jackson •David Hand •Dick Huemer •Jack Hannah •Jack King •Jack Kinney •Clyde Geronimi •Charles A. Nichols •Bill Justice •Tad Stones •Roy E. Disney •Bobs Gannaway •Paul Rudish Designers and animators:Ub Iwerks •Norman Ferguson •Les Clark •Art Babbitt •Dick Lundy •Frank Thomas •Ollie Johnston •Fred Moore •Fred Spencer •Floyd Gottfredson •Hamilton Luske •Ted Osborne •Al Taliaferro •Carl Barks •Ward Kimball •Wolfgang Reitherman •Don Rosa •Andreas Deja •Mark Henn •Michael Peraza Jr. • Robert Griggs •Eric Goldberg Composers:Carl Stalling •Frank Churchill •Oliver Wallace •Paul Smith •Albert Hay Malotte •Jimmie Dodd • Stephen James Taylor •Mark Watters • Christopher Willis Voice actors:Walt Disney •Marcellite Garner •Pinto Colvig •Billy Bletcher •Clarence Nash •Jimmy MacDonald •Bill Thompson •Paul Frees •Wayne Allwine •Tony Anselmo •Russi Taylor •Alan Young •Will Ryan •Bill Farmer •Corey Burton •Tress MacNeille •Jim Cummings •Bret Iwan •Kaitlyn Robrock •Chris Diamantopoulos •Debra Wilson